Dark and Light
by phantomhive
Summary: The eight DigiDestined are back in the Digi-World, but what is their mission this time? Will Takeru's nightmare come true? [complete]
1. Part One

**Dark and Light: Part One**

By: Sakura

Her face was so cold and pale. Her breathing was barely audible and she hardly moved. It was like she was dying… He felt helpless. He didn't know how he could save her. Hearing a growl, he whirled around, coming face-to-face with Virumon, the Digimon that had put his friend in that state. He clenched his fists and before he knew it, Virumon picked him up and……patted his back? 

"Hey, T.K. Wake up." 

T.K. opened his eyes slowly. It was just a dream. More like a nightmare. He wanted to forget it. Yawning and closing his eyes, T.K. turned onto his side and tried to go back to sleep when someone pulled his arm, making him fall off the log he was sleeping on and landing face first on the grass. T.K. flipped over to see who did that. 

Kari giggled. "Time to get up, sleepy-head," she said. Kari offered him a hand, to help him up. 

T.K. took the hand and got up. He noted that Kari's hand was cold. It reminded him of his dream, when he saw her dying…Releasing her hand, he banished the thought and dusted himself off. 

Looking up, T.K. saw Kari trying to suppress another giggle. He raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, T.K., but you look really funny. You have a lot of grass sticking out of your hair." She stepped up and brushed the grass off his hair. Kari stepped back and picked up her backpack. She also picked up his hat and handed it to him. T.K. was deep in thought and never noticed. He was thinking about his dream…his nightmare. A hand waved in front of his face, bringing him back to reality. Kari's face expressed her concern. "Are you all right, T.K.? What's wrong, you look worried about something." 

T.K. took his hat and placed it on his head, but he didn't answer Kari. "You know," she added softly. "If it's about Patamon, don't worry, we'll find him, and Gatomon, too." 

T.K. nodded, even though that wasn't what he was worried about. Well, not just that. "You're right, Kari. We will find them." Hearing a beep from his digivice, T.K. unhooked it from his pocket. Kari also unhooked hers from her bag. Both digivices indicated the same direction. Looking at each other, both DigiDestined nodded, and headed southwest from their current location. 

Eleven-year-old T.K. and Kari were back in the Digital World. They weren't the only ones. The other six DigiDestined, Tai, Matt, Sora, Izzy, Mimi, and Joe, were there also. It's been three years since they all defeated Apocalymon, and things in the Real World were getting dull again, when all of a sudden, their digivices glowed simultaneously and brought them back to the Digi-World. Tai's glowed when he was at soccer practice and it pulled him to the Digi-World; Kari was brought from the balcony of her home; Matt and T.K. from watching television; Sora from her family's flower shop; Izzy from his computer; Mimi from shopping; and Joe from studying. 

All eight DigiDestined had been dropped off at the same place, on the top of Infinity Mountain, located on File Island. After wondering what they were doing back in the Digi-World and where their Digimon partners were, each of their digivices began to beep. Tai and Matt's pointed in one direction, while T.K. and Kari's pointed in another. Same thing with Sora and Mimi, and Izzy and Joe. Izzy theorized that their digivices would lead them to their Digimon, so Tai advised everyone to split up and pair off with the person who's digivice also indicated the same direction. Before splitting up, they all agreed to meet where they landed after they found their Digimon partners within 5 days. Maybe they would be able to discover their purpose in the Digi-World when all sixteen of them were reunited again. 

Tai and Matt headed north to find Agumon and Gabumon. Sora and Mimi looked around Infinity Mountain (as indicated in their digivices) for Biyomon and Palmon. Izzy and Joe went in an eastern direction to find their partners, Tentomon and Gomamon. This left T.K. and Kari, who, following their digivices, travelled southwest to look for Patamon and Gatomon. 

Thinking back, T.K. and Kari had just spent their first night in the Digi-World, but with no luck of finding their Digimon. They hadn't given up hope, they knew they would find them. But they did wonder why they were brought back to the Digital World. 

Walking in silence, T.K. and Kari continued their search for their Digimon. T.K. felt it was his duty to protect Kari. He couldn't help it, maybe it was because he liked…Switching the topic in his mind, T.K. thought about the dream he just had that last night. It had seemed so real. Too real. It scared him a great deal. What if it was to really happen to Kari? And who was this "Virumon"? And how did he know the Digimon's name? Deep in thought, T.K. hadn't been paying too much attention to his surroundings, when the ground collapsed under him. 

"T.K.!" Kari cried. Kari grabbed T.K.'s hand to keep him from falling, but his hand slipped out of her grasp. T.K. fell, but caught a nearby tree root and hung on. The ground was still breaking apart and the root may not stay rooted much longer. Looking down, T.K. could see nothing but total darkness. The chasm was growing every second. Kari tried again and had her hand outstretched to T.K. Using his right hand to hold on to the branch, he used his left hand to reach hers. They touched briefly when the ground under Kari crumbled and she fell. T.K. caught her wrist and they hung there for a few moments. 

"Don't look down," he shouted to her. "I'll get us out of here, I promise." Kari nodded slowly. As T.K. tightened his grip on the tree root, it split apart. It was so fast, that T.K. hadn't another chance to get a hold of another thing to break his (and Kari's) fall. Both DigiDestined fell into the chasm. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari's eyes slowly fluttered open. She sat up and looked around. Where was she? It was nearly pitch-black and she could barely see anything. Kari looked up, then remembered what had happened. Sort of. All she could remember was the ground breaking apart under her and T.K., and the two of them falling into the ground. That was it. Next to her, T.K. sat up, rubbing his head. He also looked around, then turned to her. 

"What happened, Kari?" asked T.K. "It feels like Puppetmon bopped my head with his hammer." He picked up his hat and dusted it off before putting it back on his head. 

"I'm not sure, T.K.," she answered. "I don't remember much except falling down and landing here." Kari ran her fingers along the wall of dirt surrounding them. It was very smooth, but completely solid. No loose areas anywhere. 

T.K. looked up. "That's the only way out," he said, pointing up. "We'll have to climb up to get back where we were." 

Kari also looked up. "But it's too high. What if we fall?" 

Both of their digivices went off again. T.K. unhooked his. It was pointing upward. Kari got hers out, but her signal was pointing down, further into the ground. This puzzled her. T.K. hooked his back on his pocket and began climbing the wall. He slid down immediately. He tried again, but again he slid down. 

T.K. looked at Kari. "It's too steep. We can't climb it. Wish we had a rope." 

"Maybe," said Kari. "We can dig our way out." 

T.K. gaped at her incredulously. "Are you crazy? We'll just go deeper than we are now!" 

Kari shook her head and giggled. "No, silly. We dig up." She shrugged. "It's just a suggestion," she said, looking back up. 

"Well," said T.K., "I'm ready to try anything to get out of this hole." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

There she was. The child of Light. So sweet, and so innocent. She had the face of an Angel. She belonged to him. It wouldn't be too hard to get her back. For one, he thought, looking at the resting Gatomon, he had her Digimon partner. He smiled evilly. It wouldn't be long now… 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Take a break, T.K., you look tired. I'll take over now." 

T.K. leaned against the wall to rest but insisted he wasn't tired. Kari placed her hands on her hips. "Come on, T.K., I'd like to help, too, you know. You shouldn't be the one doing all the work." 

T.K. shook his head. "I'm fine, Kari," he said, smiling feebly. "Don't worry about it." 

Kari crossed her arms, but didn't say anything. She sat back down with a huff. 

The two DigiDestined were attempting to dig out of the deep hole they were trapped in, but unfortunately, the wall was as hard as a rock. T.K. has been working on it for an hour yet, but he still couldn't break through it. The area they were in wasn't very big, maybe about two metres in diameter. It was still dark there, but the sun was shining overhead, and it brought in a little light into their hole, though so high up. Kari looked up and calculated that the wall was about nine metres high, give or take a few centimetres. 

She looked back at T.K., who was doing just about every method he could think of to break the wall. He had tried punching it, scratching it, kicking it, even running and banging into it. Nothing helped. He had a guess that if they could break though this outer layer, the rest would be a piece of cake. Kari doubted that. 

Kari closed her eyes and thought back. She suspected that it wasn't by chance that both of them had fallen into this hole. She believed someone had set this as a trap. But who? And why? Kari opened her eyes and saw T.K. bang into the wall. He slid down into a sitting position. Hitting the wall had caused no effect. His hat covered his face and he didn't move. Kari stood up and moved next to T.K. before sitting down. 

"Are you okay, T.K.?" she asked. 

T.K. turned and looked at her. Then he smiled weakly. "I'm fine. Just taking a little break." He jumped back up. "I'll try again." 

Kari pulled his sleeve, keeping him from standing up. "You need to take a longer rest than that, T.K.," she said. "Just sit down and take a break. We'll find another way out." 

T.K. nodded and sat down. His stomach began to grumble. "Uh, Kari, I'm pretty hungry. How about you?" 

Kari could feel her own stomach growling. "Me, too. I'll see if I have anything to eat." She picked up her backpack, opened it, and rummaged through it. "Well," she said. "I have a few cookies and two juice packs." Kari turned to face T.K. "Not much," she added. 

T.K. smiled. "Look at it this way, at least we have something to eat." 

Kari nodded and sat back down. She handed T.K. the little bag holding the cookies. T.K. picked one up and broke it in half. He handed one half to Kari. 

"You know," he said, munching thoughtfully. "We should save these for later, just in case we get hungry again." 

"Sure," answered Kari, brushing off any stray crumbs. She put the rest of the cookies back into her backpack. 

They sat together quietly, neither one saying a word. 

"Kari," started T.K., breaking the silence. 

"Yes, T.K.?" 

He looked away. "I'm sorry." 

Kari looked at him curiously. "For what?" 

T.K. sighed. "For everything. I can't find my own Digimon. I can't get us out of this dumb hole. I don't even have any food with me!" He hung his head. "It's pointless for me to be here. I'm useless." 

Kari shook her head. "Don't say that, T.K.," she said gently. "You're not useless and I'm glad you're here. I don't feel so lonely with you to keep me company. We will find Gatomon and Patamon. I'm sure of it." Kari smiled at him. 

T.K. smiled back. "Thanks, Kari." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was a little while later. The sun had set and the night air had turned cold. T.K. was walking around, trying to find a way out. Kari was sitting, watching him. It had been a long day. They still haven't escaped their deep cell. 

Kari shivered and rubbed her arms when a chilly breeze wafted into the hole. It was an attempt to get warmer. Unfortunately, it wasn't helping one bit. She was wearing a sleeveless shirt because back in the Real World, it had been a very warm day. Kari felt someone enclose their arms around hers. She turned and saw T.K. He blushed and let go of her. 

"I'm sorry," he said, still blushing. "I thought you might be cold." He turned and began to move away when Kari spoke up. 

"Wait," she started. T.K. stopped and faced Kari. She looked at the ground. "I…um…I…" she said, her face colouring a deep pink. Kari looked back at T.K. "I didn't really mind. It kind of helped." she finished, with a demure smile on her face. 

T.K. smiled shyly. He nodded and held Kari close to him, to keep her warm, and himself. The night air seemed to get colder and colder. Kari rested her head on his shoulder. Her eyelids were beginning to drop. She was very tired. "I hope Tai and the others are okay…" she said softly, before falling asleep. T.K. rested his head on Kari's and he, too, soon fell asleep. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

His clenched fists struck the table. How dare T.K. hold her! How dare he! In a jealous rage, he hit the table again, breaking it. He took a deep breath and calmed down. He had to remain calm. If he didn't, who knew what would happen to him. He had to execute his plan very soon. "Better savour your last moments with Kari, T.K.," he said, sneering at the image of T.K. "For you'll never see her again when I'm through with you!"


	2. Part Two

**Dark and Light: Part Two**

By: Sakura

…Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep…Beep… 

T.K. opened his eyes and yawned. Letting his eyes adjust to the darkness, he could see Kari sleeping, with her head against his shoulder. He could also see the light from his digivice. It was reacting again. Moving his arm carefully, so as not to wake Kari, T.K. unhooked his digivice. The signal was getting louder by the minute. Not wanting to bother Kari, he pushed his digivice into her backpack, to muffle the sound. 

T.K. looked back at Kari. She was breathing softly, peacefully even. Her arms weren't as cold as they were earlier. He blushed again, thinking of how he had impulsively put his arms around Kari to keep her warm. T.K. couldn't sleep anymore, so he let his mind drift. He thought about when all of them were brought back to the Digital World. It has been…how many days now? This was the second night they spent in the Digi-World. It seemed longer than that, but he didn't mind. Kari was with him. The two of them had three more days before they were supposed to meet up with the others. That's if they could get out of this hole. If Patamon or Gatomon were here, they could digivolve and fly them out of this place. 

Kari began to stir, for the signal from the digivice got even louder. She opened her eyes and looked face-to-face with T.K. For a few minutes, neither of them spoke. It was a comfortable silence for them. Then T.K. smiled and said, quoting Kari from the night before, "Time to get up, sleepyhead." 

Kari chuckled. Looking first at the sky and then at T.K., she said, "It's too early, the sun hasn't even risen yet." She sat up and picked up her bag. "Since when did I have an alarm clock in here?" she muttered. Opening the flap, she found T.K.'s digivice, beeping insistently. T.K. took it with a sheepish grin. 

"Sorry about that," he said. "I thought putting it in your bag would muffle the sound. I didn't want to wake you up just yet." 

"That's all right," said Kari. "Why is your digivice getting louder every minute?" 

T.K. shrugged. "I'm not sure at all." He jumped up immediately and looked. Who called his name? 

Kari stood up and looked at T.K. "What's wrong?" she asked. T.K. put a finger to his lips and Kari nodded. It was distant yet, but it was getting louder. Someone was calling T.K., but who? 

"T.K.!" 

Both DigiDestined looked up. Directly above the opening to the hole they were trapped in, a little figure with wings came into view. 

"Patamon?" T.K. asked, bewildered. 

"T.K.!!!" 

The small figure flew all the way down and landed right in T.K.'s arms, knocking him to the ground. 

"Patamon!" T.K. said, hugging his Digimon. 

"T.K., I've been looking all over for you," said Patamon. "And I'm real glad I found you!" 

Kari knelt down by T.K. and Patamon. "Patamon," she said. "Have you seen Gatomon?" 

Patamon turned to Kari and shook his head. "I've been looking for her, too. She was with me just two days ago, but then she was taken away." 

T.K. sat up. "What happened to her, Patamon?" 

"Well," Patamon said. "You see, all eight of us Digimon were attacked three days ago by the Digimon controlled by Dark Wing. 

"Dark Wing? Who's that?" asked Kari. 

"Even us Digimon aren't sure, Kari. Anyway," continued Patamon. "Dark Wing's Digimon attacked us. We decided to try and split them up, for when Dark Wing's Digimon are together, they're much stronger. So Agumon and Gabumon went one way, with Raremon on their trail. Biyomon and Palmon went another, with Gesomon following them. Tentomon and Gomamon made Mammothmon follow them. That left me and Gatomon. Problem was that we had the hardest Digimon to defeat on our tail." 

"Who was it?" asked T.K. 

"Virumon," Patamon answered. 

The name struck T.K. like a lightning bolt. Virumon was the Digimon that had hurt Kari in his dream. He looked over at Kari and noticed that she was listening to Patamon, still explaining the events that occurred two days ago. 

"Virumon," Patamon was saying. "Is a Virus type Digimon at the Ultimate level. We were no match for him. I'm only at the Rookie level and Gatomon's at Champion. He was too much for us to handle." Patamon looked down. "After he wore us out, he used his "Nightmare Sleep" attack on Gatomon. She went out like a light. Then he picked me up by my wings and flung me far away." Patamon looked at Kari. "That's the last time I saw her. As soon as I could recover, I flew back to the spot, but Gatomon was gone, and so was Virumon. I've been looking for her, but I can't find her anywhere. I think maybe Virumon took her back to Dark Wing, but I don't know why he would do that. For some reason," said Patamon, turning to face T.K. "I don't really know how, but I knew you were here. I knew you came back to the Digital World. So I went to look for you. And," he added, hugging T.K. "I'm just so glad I found you." 

T.K. hugged Patamon back. Looking over Patamon's head, he could see Kari's dejected pose. 

Kari was looking at the ground with her head bent. Tears were forming in her eyes. "Gatomon…" she whispered. "Please be okay. Please…" Kari felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw T.K. He could see the tears in her eyes. 

"Hey," he said softly. "Gatomon will be okay. We'll find her, no matter what." 

Kari nodded and tried to blink away her tears, but they fell anyway. T.K. wiped them away for her and gave her a hug, to comfort her. Patamon took half a cookie from the bag and munched away in silence. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"That does it!" he cried. "I've had it with T.K.! He's gonna wish he never heard of the Digital World!" Opening up his laptop computer, he clicked a few keys. He shut it with a satisfied smile. "Time to teach him a lesson he'll never forget." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

A rumbling occurred and both DigiDestined looked up to see a shower of rocks and soil fall on top of them. "Watch out!" cried Patamon. 

Right when he saw the debris fall on them, T.K. used himself as a shield to keep Kari from getting hit. Patamon flew up to try to find out what was causing the rocks to fall when he was struck by one of the rocks. He fell and hit the ground. "Patamon!" yelled T.K. 

Suddenly, a passageway opened up, revealing a steep tunnel, directly beneath Kari. "T.K.!" she cried, falling in. The opening swallowed her up and sealed itself shut. Kari was gone. 

Despite the debris still falling, T.K. sat motionless, staring at the ground in disbelief. What had happened? Patamon slowly stood up. "T.K.," he said. "We have to get out of here, right away! Before we're completely buried!" 

T.K. didn't answer him. He didn't even look at him. He continued to stare at the ground. 

"Patamon digivolve to…Angemon!" Angemon used his wings to protect T.K. from getting hit. "T.K.," Angemon said firmly. "We have to get out of here, now." 

T.K. finally tore his eyes away from the ground and looked at Angemon. "Not without Kari." He said, shaking his head. 

Angemon's voice took a softer tone. "T.K., you can only save her by getting out of here first. If you don't, we'll never be able to save her." 

T.K. nodded reluctantly. Angemon picked him up and flew to the mouth of the hole and out into the open air. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari opened her eyes. Where was she? What happened? The lights in the room were very dim. She slowly sat up. She was sitting on a small pile of hay. Just a few feet above her was the tunnel she had fallen down. Well, more like slid down, she thought. In front of her, though far away, was a metal door, with a narrow slit for a window. To both sides of her, there was nothing but barren walls with small windows. They were all barred. Quite similar to what the inside of a jail cell might look like. Kari didn't understand how she got here. She felt confused…and a little dizzy. 

Kari looked around, then stopped. It was like someone was watching her. She realized she wasn't alone. 

In the far right corner of the room, sat a figure. He had been watching her ever since she had fallen into the room. He slowly stood up and approached her. He studied her closely. "You," he said finally. "You're one of the DigiDestined, aren't you? Kari Kamiya, right?" 

Kari nodded slowly. "Who are you?" she asked. 

"Name's Dylan West. I'm the ninth DigiDestined." he smiled. "Which would be why I was locked in here by Dark Wing." he said. He paused for a moment, then continued. "Your Digimon partner is a prisoner of Dark Wing, too. He was going to use her as bait to capture you, Kari." 

She looked crest-fallen for a moment. "Gatomon…" thought Kari. She stood up. "Is there a way out of here?" Dylan nodded. "Show me," she said. "I have to find Gatomon and T.K." 

Dylan clenched his fists for a moment, but Kari never noticed. He pointed at the chute above their heads. "That's the way out. The only way, besides the door." He looked at the metal door, then back at Kari, and said, "There's no way we can get out that way. It's heavily guarded." 

Kari looked up at the chute. It was about ten feet above the ground. She looked at Dylan. "How do you know about this?" she asked. 

"When you fell through the chute," answered Dylan. "You were knocked unconscious by some gases placed there for that purpose. When I fell through there the second time, I managed to avoid that, and kept sliding down. I noticed that there were several holes on the side of the chute. You could see a ladder and near the end of the chute, a landing. There's probably a way out from there." 

"Then why didn't you try to escape through there before I came?" 

Dylan shrugged his shoulders. "Merely because I can't reach that chute from here without some help," he said. "The first time I escaped, I got out through the door, but now they guard it heavily because they think I'll try to escape again." He looked at Kari. "Ready to give it a try?" 

Kari nodded. Using himself as a stepping stone, Dylan boosted Kari up so she could try to get a hold of the chute. She caught hold, pulled herself up, and found herself on a small landing. She also found a rope, and after tying it to a pipe, tossed it to Dylan, which he used to climb up. He sat panting on the landing then stood up. He indicated to the ladder behind them and the two of them began to climb it. 

At the end of the ladder, there was another landing, and a door. Dylan told Kari to step back, and he slowly opened it. Seeing no one, he ushered her in. The room was much darker than the passageway from which they came. After their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Kari spotted something, across the room. Something…or someone. 

"Gatomon!" she cried.


	3. Part Three

**Dark and Light: Part Three**

By: Sakura

"Kari!" 

T.K. and Angemon had been travelling in circles, in search of Kari. Angemon had remembered that one time, when he had been Patamon, he had also fallen through the same passageway that had swallowed up Kari. It happened sometime the year before. At the bottom of the passageway was a small room, but it had multiple exits. He got out of there with no problem and never gave a thought to it since. Angemon figured that after Kari reached the room, she might take one of the exits out and start searching for them. So now he and T.K. were searching for her around this vicinity. Unknown to either Angemon or T.K., the Dark Wing had taken over that room, enlarging it into a laboratory. He had reconstructed the whole area, but left the small room as a cell. 

T.K. was angry at himself. He was supposed to watch her, protect her, take care of her! Instead, he had let Kari down. He had Angemon with him now, but she was alone, without anyone there to protect her. T.K. had heard Kari cry out his name when she disappeared through the passageway, but he hadn't reacted quickly enough. He had lost her. Tai was going to kill him. And she was all alone… 

"T.K., are you there?" T.K. had stopped walking for a few minutes already and was staring at the ground, still blaming himself. He looked up to see Patamon waving his hand in front of T.K.'s eyes. 

"Patamon!" he exclaimed. "You de-digivolved!" Patamon nodded. T.K. looked at the ground again. "It's my fault," he whispered, slowly clenching his fists. "Why can't I do anything right?!" he yelled. "I'm useless to everyone!" Tears were beginning to roll down his cheeks. "I can't protect Kari…I can't even help my own Digimon!" Angrily, he brushed away his tears. "Why do I have to be one of the DigiDestined? Especially when I'm such a disappointment to everyone…" 

Patamon was getting worried. He had never heard T.K. speak like this before. "T.K.," he started. T.K. didn't look at his Digimon. "Do you remember what your crest represents?" 

T.K. didn't answer right away. "Hope." he said, finally. 

"That's right," Patamon said. "Have hope - and faith - in yourself. We will find Kari. Just believe in yourself." T.K. turned to him slowly and nodded. 

"You're right, Patamon," he said. "Kari wouldn't want me to be standing here feeling sorry for myself. She'd want me to be out there helping her and Gatomon, no matter what the circumstances are." 

Patamon smiled. "The main reason I de-digivolved is because I'm hungry." He looked imploringly at T.K. "Do you have anything to eat?" 

T.K. pulled out Kari's backpack. Opening it, he picked up a cookie. Patamon took it and finished it quickly. He digivolved back to Angemon. 

"Come on, T.K.," his Digimon said, "Let's recommence our search." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Gatomon, Gatomon, Gatomon!" 

Kari had picked Gatomon up and was hugging her very tightly. Gatomon came to and began to choke out, "…Kari…I…ca - n't…brea - the…" 

Kari stopped and held her Digimon out at arms length. She smiled ruefully. "I'm sorry, Gatomon," she said. "I was just so excited to see you and…" Kari stopped in mid-sentence when she saw Gatomon glaring at someone behind Kari. 

Dylan walked up to Kari and Gatomon. Gatomon watched him suspiciously. Dylan offered her his hand. Seeing that she wasn't going to accept it, he took Gatomon's paw and shook it. "Nice to meet you, Gatomon," he said. 

Gatomon glanced at Kari. Kari smiled a bit. "This is Dylan. He helped me get out of a cell I was stuck in and also helped me to find you." Gatomon still eyed Dylan warily, but she didn't comment. 

Dylan looked around the laboratory. "Know what, Kari?" he said. "We better get out of here before the Dark Wing or his minions return here." Kari nodded. Dylan ran to an entryway and poked his head through. Seeing no one, he gestured for Kari and Gatomon to follow. Kari glanced down at Gatomon, who shrugged and gave her a look saying let's follow anyway. The trio hastily left the lab. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari leaned against a tree, trying to catch her breath. 

Upon leaving the laboratory, Dylan, Kari, and Gatomon, were attacked by several Tyrannomon that guarded the exterior of the lab. Gatomon had digivolved to Angewomon, but, the fact that there were too many Tyrannomon and also that she had been greatly weakened in the captivity of Dark Wing, she de-digivolved all the way back to Salamon. Kari had then picked up her Digimon and tried to lose the Tyrannomon on their tail, but all in vain. There wasn't much cover in the area and the Tyrannomon could track them easily. 

Dylan quickly formulated a plan in his mind. He would divert the Tyrannomons' attention and then retreat into the forest. The Tyrannomon would have a much harder time tracking him, for the forest was very dark and very dense. After advising Kari of his plans, Dylan told her that he'd meet up with her and Gatomon by the waterfall that could be seen in the far distance after he had lost the Tyrannomon. 

Kari looked over to the direction Dylan had taken. She could see all the Tyrannomon struggling to keep up with him. With little Salamon in her arms, Kari ran swiftly toward the waterfall. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Ahhh!" cried Patamon. 

T.K. picked up Patamon and ran. They had been walking, still in search of Kari, when two Tyrannomon came out of nowhere and began attacking them. Angemon had done his best to protect T.K., but more Tyrannomon joined up with the two already attacking and it was no use. Angemon had been greatly outnumbered. And with very little energy left, he de-digivolved back to Patamon. 

"Where did all of them come from?" asked T.K. Spotting a cave a short distance away, he quickly sprinted toward it. He ducked in the entrance and stood up, still running from the entryway. The Tyrannomon couldn't follow anymore, being too big for the entrance. T.K. stopped and sat down on the cave floor, exhausted. He held up Patamon. "How are you doing, Patamon?" he asked. 

"I'll be okay," the Digimon answered, wearily. 

T.K. hugged him lightly. "Thanks," he said. "For protecting me." 

Patamon nodded, flapping his wings. He paused for a moment. Patamon turned his head and looked down further into the cave. "What is it, Patamon?" asked T.K. "Do you hear something?" 

Patamon flew up. "I hear water," he said, pointing to the direction opposite of the cave's entrance. 

T.K. looked at the way Patamon pointed, then to the cave entrance. He could still hear the Tyrannomon outside, trying to find a way to break into the cave. T.K. stood up. "Then let's go there." he said. "I don't want to face the Tyrannomon again until we're at full strength." Patamon lead the way, deeper into the cave. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari splashed a little water on her face. 

Kari and Salamon had reached the waterfall and were now sitting by the edge of a large pool of water. She looked sadly at her Digimon. "I'm sorry, Salamon," Kari said. "If I still had my backpack with me, I could give you something to eat so you could digivolve to Gatomon." 

"Being at the rookie level isn't so bad," said Salamon, with a wan smile. "I'm just not used to it, that's all." Thinking back, she hadn't been Salamon since the time she had first been discovered by Myotismon. She walked over to Kari and settled into her lap, tired and sleepy, not to mention a little hungry. Kari lightly stroked Salamon's back and sighed. She missed T.K. already. She hadn't seen him since early this morning, when the pit was collapsing and she had fallen into the cell. What had happened to him and Patamon? And Tai, her big brother. How was he faring? Had he found Agumon already? She was sure he'd be fine. Kari's thoughts then drifted to Dylan. He was risking his life to save hers and Salamon's. Quite a brave act. She hoped he was okay, too. 

Hearing voices behind her, Kari spun around quickly to see who - or what - was behind her. Salamon stepped in front of her partner, as a protective gesture. The voices were getting louder. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"When will this passage end? It seems like a long time since we entered this passageway." 

"Don't worry, T.K.," said Patamon, perched atop T.K.'s head, pointing ahead of them. "We're getting close. I can hear the water clearly now." They continued to walk silently for a few minutes. They halted when the pathway they took forked in two. "Uh-oh." Patamon muttered. 

"Hmm…"Uh-oh" is right." T.K. looked up at Patamon. "So, which way do we go?" 

Patamon lifted his wings. He closed his eyes and listened carefully. His eyes opened and he pointed to the path to the right. "That one." 

T.K. peered down the path Patamon pointed to. Then he looked to the opposite one. "You sure, Patamon?" he asked. "That path is so much darker than the other." 

"I'm positive," answered Patamon. "The water is coming from there." He flew into the path on the right. "Come on." T.K. shrugged, then followed his Digimon. They kept walking until water came into view. A waterfall to be exact. The sunlight shone through the water. 

"Do we have to go through the waterfall, Patamon?" asked T.K. 

Patamon flew to the mouth of the passageway. He shook his head. "There's a way out right here." He said. Patamon flew out and T.K. followed. 

"T.K.!" 

T.K. looked up in surprise to see Kari and…Salamon? Kari gave him a big hug. "I didn't think I'd see you again!" she cried. 

T.K. hugged Kari back. "I'm so glad you're okay," he said. 

Heavy footsteps were approaching. "The Tyrannomon are back!" cried Salamon. "We have to leave here!" 

"But what about Dylan?" asked Kari. 

"Dylan?" thought T.K. "Who's that?" he asked aloud. 

The Tyrannomon came into view, growling fiercely at the sight of the DigiDestined and their Digimon. "Get out of here, Kari!" called Dylan, running up almost alongside the Tyrannomon. One of the Tyrannomon caught sight of Dylan and attacked him with a ball of fire. Dylan seemed to disappear from sight within the flame. 

"Dylan, no!"


	4. Part Four

**Dark and Light: Part Four**

By: Sakura

A Tyrannomon came stalking into view and aimed an attack at Kari. Kari, not seeing the Tyrannomon, was trying to find Dylan, who seemed to have disappeared into thin air. She hadn't seen him since the other Tyrannomon attacked him. Could he be…No. She knew he was still alive. She felt sure of it. 

"Kari!" came a voice, interrupting her thoughts. She turned and saw T.K. running toward her. He was pointing to something behind her. "Look out!" Kari turned and looked up, just as the Tyrannomon was getting ready to attack. She was inert, rooted to the ground, unable to move. 

The Tyrannomon reared back, a fireball forming in his mouth. Kari's eyes widened in terror. T.K. suddenly flew out and tackled Kari. Tyrannomon shot his attack, missed the DigiDestined, and hit the rocks surrounding the waterfall. Stomping around, in search of the DigiDestined, the Digimon couldn't find them anywhere. Angrily, it headed to regroup with the other Tyrannomon. The Tyrannomon had given up and were heading back to the lab. 

After a few minutes, the peace of the forest returned. The waterfall flowed smoothly, serenely, and undisturbed. The harsh steps of the Tyrannomon had faded into the distance. T.K. slowly lifted his head and looked around. Kari was still shaking a bit in his arms. He stood up and helped her up, too. 

When Kari saw the Tyrannomon directly in front of her, she told every inch of her body to move, but it wouldn't listen. In fact, if it hadn't been for T.K., she could be d- 

It had all happened so quickly. T.K., seeing Kari not moving when he warned her about the danger, ran forward and tackled her to the ground. Because they had both hit the ground with such force, they had begun to roll down a small ravine into the forest. They stopped at the foot of a tall tree, motionless. T.K. was on top of Kari, and when he looked down, he could see Kari was visibly shaken. He held her tight in his arms to calm her. The two kept their heads low and stayed as still as possible until the Tyrannomon left. 

As soon as the Rookie Digimon saw their partners, they went to them to see if they were all right. Besides a few scratches and bruises, both DigiDestined were fine. Kari turned to T.K. and thanked him for saving her life. T.K. blushed and said it was nothing. Kari nodded, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips because of the boy turning crimson red in front of her. And then she remembered. 

"Dylan!" 

T.K. had stopped blushing and looked at her in confusion. "Who's Dylan?" he asked. He looked out, past the waterfall. Then it dawned to him. It must be the other guy he had seen running toward them, the one that had been hit by the Tyrannomon's attack. 

"…helped me find Gatomon." T.K. looked at Kari, noticing that he had missed what she had just said. Kari was looking at him imploringly. "T.K., we have to find him." 

"Wait a minute, could you repeat that?" asked T.K. "Who is this guy?" Kari looked a little surprised, but told him again that Dylan was the Ninth DigiDestined and what he had done to help her. T.K. couldn't help it, but listening to Kari talk about this new guy with such warmth stirred a little jealousy in T.K.'s heart. When Kari said they should go look for Dylan to see if he was all right, T.K. immediately agreed. He could never turn down Kari's requests, nor could he not help her since, after all, this Dylan person had saved Kari and Gatomon's lives. 

As soon as T.K. agreed to help find Dylan, the DigiDestined went on their way. Having had a short break, Salamon was able to digivolve to Gatomon and Patamon digivolved to Angemon. Seeing how searching by air would be a great deal faster than searching on foot, Angemon carried T.K. and Kari in his arms while Kari held Gatomon. Scanning the area, neither of the two could see Dylan anywhere. 

Landing at the spot where the Tyrannomon had attacked their friend, Angemon de-digivolved back to Patamon and Kari and T.K. continued their search there on the ground. After looking for a few minutes and calling out for him, Kari looked over to see how T.K. was faring. He just shook his head. Kari sighed. How could it be? It was as if Dylan had disappeared without a trace… 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"It's time those DigiDestined were finished off," Dark Wing thought to himself, with a malicious grin. Raremon still had Agumon and Gabumon occupied, Gesomon never stopped trailing Biyomon and Palmon, and Mammothmon was giving Tentomon and Gomamon a hard time. The other six DigiDestined were meaningless to him. They were far too weak to cause him much worry. But the youngest two did cause him some uneasiness. They were far stronger than the others, though they never realized it yet. 

Dark Wing knew he had to destroy the two DigiDestined. But deep down, in the depths of his heart, he still loved the child of Light, and nothing could change that. Taking off his mask, he stared at it, long and hard. It had originally been Myotismon's mask, but it had turned black when an evil force merged with it. Just putting on that mask could change someone, drastically. They forget the good things of life and only remembered all the evil. Without the mask on, the boy felt doubt fill his heart. Was he doing the right thing? Did he really have to destroy the DigiDestined? 

He looked up at the screen and watched T.K. and Kari. They both looked so worried about not finding Dylan, especially Kari. They cared for him as a friend…and as an ally, since they thought he was the Ninth DigiDestined. His eyes lingered on Kari a little longer. Then he closed his eyes and whispered softly, "I'm sorry, Kari. Dylan can no longer exist." He put the mask back on his face. All of the weak emotions he had felt earlier were reduced to almost nothingness. 

Dark Wing stood up. "Virumon!" he shouted. Virumon burst through the wall and stood in front of his master, awaiting his orders. Dark Wing smiled, with an evil glint in his eyes, and said, "Let's go, Virumon. We have a few DigiDestined to erase from this world." Virumon growled and stalked out of the lab, with his master standing on his shoulder. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari sighed again. 

"It's no use," she said. T.K. and Kari had spent over than an hour searching for Dylan, but with no luck. "We'll never find him." 

T.K. put a hand on her shoulder, as a comforting gesture. "Don't give up hope, Kari," he said. "We will find him." Kari didn't answer him. 

"Wait a minute, you guys," piped up Patamon. Both DigiDestined turned to him. "There's an easy way to find him. Hmm…I wonder why we never thought about it before." 

"What is it, Patamon?" asked T.K. 

"Use your digivices." T.K. and Kari stared at him blankly. "You did say he told you that he was the Ninth DigiDestined, didn't you, Kari?" Kari nodded. "Your digivices can track him down, because, if he were a DigiDestined, he'd have a digivice, too." 

T.K. smacked himself lightly in the head. "Of course! I forgot all about that!" T.K. unhooked his digivice and tried to get a reading. 

Gatomon walked over to T.K. and asked him, "Any luck?" 

T.K. shook his head sadly. "I don't get it," he said. "I can't get any reading on his whatsoever." He turned to Kari. "Dylan could be…" 

Kari covered her ears and turned away from T.K. "Don't say that! He isn't! I know he isn't!" She dropped to the ground, tears in her eyes. "He can't be…" she whispered. T.K. was speechless at her sudden outburst. This was something one might expect from Mimi, but never mild-mannered Kari. She wouldn't be like that unless she really cared for him…But the thought of Kari liking someone other than him hurt T.K., badly, though he could never admit it. Not to her, not to anyone, not even to himself. 

Gatomon had to admit, not aloud, that she was rather glad that they couldn't locate Dylan. Not that she wanted him to be deleted or anything, it's just…she didn't trust him at all. Gatomon pretended that she did because Kari seemed to have so much faith in Dylan. There was something peculiar about him. One thing that worried Gatomon most about Dylan was the coldness in his eyes, the feeling of dread she received when she saw them. It reminded her of Myotismon, of the torture she had endured before finally being reunited with Kari… 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tai was running at top speed. Not watching where he was going, he crashed into Izzy. 

"Izzy!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here?" 

Izzy was panting when he stood up. "I'm trying to lose the Mammothmon that has been chasing me, Joe, and our Digimon." He saw the Digimon behind Tai and began running deeper into the forest, with Tai right behind him. "I guess you're trying to do the same with that Raremon on your tail." 

"You got that right!" 

"Tai!" 

Tai halted and so did Izzy. Tai turned to look for who had called him when he was wrenched into a tree. Izzy was pulled in, too. 

"Whoa…Where am I?" thought Tai. He looked up and came face-to-face with Sora. "What the…!" He shifted back and fell through the tree. Sora quickly pulled Tai into the tree again. 

"Shh!" 

"Huh?" Tai realized the tree they were in was very similar to the one he and Izzy were hiding in on their first day in the Digi-World, just bigger. 

Tai looked around and realized that everyone was there. Besides him and Agumon, five DigiDestined and their Digimon partners had all gathered inside the tree. They were trying to come up with a strategy to stop the evil Digimon. It would be better than just trying to run away from them. Tai then noticed that Kari and T.K. were absent from the group. 

Tai stood up quickly. "Where's Kari?" he asked. "And T.K.?" Tentomon pushed Tai back down to sit on the ground and when Tai protested against this, Agumon covered his mouth. 

"Be quiet, Tai," whispered Sora. "The evil Digimon are still out there." Tai nodded. Amidst the noise made by the three Digimon outside the tree, Tai's mind wandered to things other than the immediate danger he and his friends were in. What happened to Kari? 

~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. wished he hadn't stated so quickly that Dylan could be gone, but it was a possibility. He didn't see how anyone could have survived being hit by a fireball. After he had made that statement, he and Kari had gotten into a huge fight and with the comments they made toward each other fresh in their mind, neither wished to apologize right away. 

Taking in Kari's side profile in a glance, T.K. turned and slowly walked away from her and pretended to still be searching for Dylan. T.K. just wanted time alone to think. Patamon started to follow him but T.K. signaled for him to stop. Patamon landed on the ground and watched T.K. walk alone deeper into the forest. Kari watched T.K.'s retreat into the forest, but she didn't say anything to stop him. She pulled her legs up and hugged them to her. Kari felt a tear fall, but she didn't try to stop it. She felt like crying at that moment. The words they had said to each other still stuck in her mind. 

~*Flashback*~

"How could you care for him so much?" T.K. demanded. 

"What do you mean?" Kari retorted. "I care for everyone! All my friends! He's my friend, too, so why shouldn't I care for him?" 

"Because…because…" T.K. couldn't get the words to come out right. "I can't explain it…" 

"Try to," said Kari. 

"I just…I just don't trust him!" 

"You haven't even met him yet!" she cried. "What gives you the right to judge him? You don't know him!" 

"Well," said T.K. "When it comes to that, you don't know him very well either." 

"Maybe so," Kari answered. "But at least he doesn't act like an overprotective person!" 

"Overprotective, huh?" said T.K. "Well, I'll assume you mean me." 

"What do you think?" 

T.K. was silent for a long time. "Fine," he said finally. "Fine. If you want Dylan, go to him. Be with him! You'd probably like him better than me, anyway!" Kari gave him no answer. 

~*End Flashback*~

T.K. knocked his head against a tree trunk. "You're so stupid, T.K.," he said to himself. "Stupid, stupid, stupid." He stopped and turned around to lean against the tree. He never fought with Kari like that before. He wished he hadn't. T.K. wished he could take back all the words he had said. But he couldn't. T.K. slouched against the tree with a tremendous sigh. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Dark Wing laughed out loud. He never knew the DigiDestined would pick such a doltish topic to argue about. It did nothing more than drive them further apart. He smiled as Virumon continued his pace. This was definitely to his benefit. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Kari?" Gatomon looked up at her partner, her eyes and expression filled with concern. 

"Leave me alone, Gatomon," Kari said, turning away from her Digimon. Gatomon and Patamon looked at each other, casting worried glances at each other. Kari suddenly stood up and began walking in the opposite direction T.K. went, also heading deeper into the forest. 

"Kari, wait!" called Gatomon. But Kari has disappeared from sight. Gatomon and Patamon looked at each other again, saddened expressions on both faces. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Why? Why? Why?" Kari asked herself over and over. 

She cared for T.K., more than anyone else, besides her own family. Why couldn't he see that? She didn't love Dylan, she loved him. Kari stopped walking and brushed away all the tears that had fallen. But no matter how many times she brushed them away, more kept forming and falling. 

"T.K.…" whispered Kari. 

Suddenly hearing pounding footsteps, Kari looked up. It was a Digimon; that much was obvious. He was very dark in colour, with large razor-sharp teeth protruding out of his mouth. Above his hands were cannons and they also criss-crossed over his back, sticking out over his shoulders. Someone was sitting on top of the Digimon's left shoulder. A young boy, with a black mask, not unlike Myotismon's, and a shadowy-aura around him that seemed to engulf him completely. 

Dark Wing's mouth curved up to a smile. "Get her, Virumon." 

Kari's piercing scream echoed through the forest.


	5. Part Five

**Dark and Light: Part Five**

By: Sakura

Kari! 

T.K. stopped moving. That was Kari, he knew it. He could feel it. She was in danger. If anything happened to her…it would be all his fault for leaving her! T.K. turned around and broke into a sprint. He ran aimlessly, without any sense of direction, and yet, he knew exactly where to go to find her. 

"Kari, I'm sorry…" thought T.K. His mind shifted to the dream he had two nights ago. "Just be okay when I get there!" he shouted. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Kari's in trouble!" cried Gatomon. 

Without wasting a second, Gatomon digivolved to Angewomon. Patamon, following suit, digivolved to Angemon. Angewomon and Angemon spread their white wings and soared into the sky, stopping short upon being over the treetops. The former immediately sensed Kari's location and informed the latter to follow her. The two Angel Digimon flew swiftly through the sky, which was growing darker by the minute. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari backed away as Virumon moved slowly towards her. She looked up at the boy. "You're Dark Wing, aren't you?" 

Dark Wing laughed. "Good. No introductions will be necessary then." He jumped off Virumon and landed neatly on the ground. Straightening up, Dark Wing advanced toward Kari. 

Kari kept retreating until she came up against a rock wall. She realized she was cornered and had nowhere to run. Dark Wing had this in mind all along. She didn't know why, but Kari had a strange feeling that help was on the way and she could get out of this jam if she stalled Dark Wing for just a little while. 

"What do you want from me?" asked Kari, trying to keep the fear she felt out of her tone. 

Dark Wing stopped a foot in front of Kari. "It's very simple," he said. "Your power." 

"What power are you talking about?" Kari asked candidly. 

Dark Wing rolled his eyes. "You are far too naïve, DigiDestined," he said. "A lot like your 'friend', Dylan." 

Now shock registered on her face. "Dylan?" Kari clenched her fists. "What did you do to him?" she demanded. 

"I made sure that he'd never come back." In an instant, Dark Wing closed his right hand around Kari's neck, pushing her back into the rock face. Kari gasped and struggled to breathe but nearly couldn't because Dark Wing had his hand locked tight on her throat. "Give me your power," he whispered fiercely. "Release the power of the Light!" 

"…no…" Kari said, her voice barely audible. 

Dark Wing glared at her contemptuously. "If you won't give it to me, then I'll have to take it from you." 

Dark Wing placed his left hand flat against the base of her neck and strove to draw in her power. It was working well, for Kari's power was being drained. The power she had for the Crest of Light. It was weakening her and making him stronger. Kari placed a grip on Dark Wing's right arm with her hands and attempted to make him release her from his hold on her, but all in vain. He was much stronger than she was and because he was taking her power, she hadn't much energy left to fight back. Everything in Kari's mind was slowly turning into an empty black space…except she could still see something - or someone - clearly. Her arms dropped to her side limply. "…I'm…sorry…T.…K.…" 

Dark Wing smirked. "T.K. can't help you anymore." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. halted so quickly that he crashed into a small tree. He sat up, feeling rather dazed and a little dizzy. Then the feeling came, a sharp pain in his chest. Could someone be hurting Kari? He quickly got up and saw that he had arrived at the scene. But whether or not he had come on time or not was hard to say. 

T.K. crept in the undergrowth as quietly as possible, so as not to call the attention of the Digimon standing in the clearing. He knew the Digimon was Virumon because it looked exactly as it had in his dream. Looking a few feet away, T.K. saw Kari with someone wearing a black mask that was similar to Myotismon's. Dark Wing. It had to be. He watched in horror as Dark Wing clamped his hand around Kari's throat and then began to drain her power. 

T.K. felt helpless, completely helpless. There was no way he could save her, not with the Virumon standing guard. He looked back toward Kari's direction and felt anger fill him at the sight of Dark Wing hurting Kari. "Wait a minute," he thought, looking at the rock wall Kari was backed against. "That's it!" T.K. quickly ran through the trees, heading toward the other end of the clearing. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

What was this? Why was doubt beginning to creep into his mind again? Dark Wing stared into Kari's half-closed eyes that had been filled with fear not so long ago. Now they were nearly blank because she was losing consciousness. Why was he hurting her like this? He shook his head, clearing away all doubt. He needed her power - and T.K.'s - and nothing would stop him from taking it. 

Kari struggled to lift her eyelids. They felt so heavy. She was drifting away, away from the light…or was she heading toward it? She felt so confused. Kari finally succeeded in opening her eyelids, but just a slit. She could see Dark Wing's face, set and determined to finish his task. Why was it so important that he take her power? When she caught sight of his eyes…she gasped inwardly. "Those eyes…" thought Kari. "…they were exactly like…Dylan's? No, it couldn't be him. It's not possible." 

It didn't make sense to her. Her friend was really her enemy. Kari's thoughts were in total turmoil. And yet, it made a little sense. "Dark Wing…Dylan West…DW…" She could have kicked herself for not seeing it earlier. Dark Wing was right, she was naïve. Almost everything made sense to her now, except, the reason why. "…Dylan…" Kari choked out. "…please…stop…" 

Dark Wing's eyes widened. How did she know? His hold on her loosened for a moment, but tightened again. "Dylan is gone," he hissed. "He'll never come back." 

"Never?" 

Kari no longer seemed to be losing her energy. Instead, it looked as if it had been renewed. Fear had disappeared from her expression and in its place was indifference, as if nothing could touch her. She reached out with one hand and touched Dark Wing's mask. A flash of light emitted from Kari as she attempted to take it off his face. Dark Wing tightened his hand on her throat again, but she didn't seem to notice. The mask was beginning to loosen. With a final desperate attempt, Dark Wing threw Kari to the ground, releasing his hold on her. Kari hit the ground hard, the light vanished, and she lay there, motionless. 

Dark Wing felt stricken again. Why had he done that? What was really to be gained by his hurting her? He almost felt sorry for the child of Light. Sorry about what he had just done to her. He pressed the mask firmly onto his face again. 

Hearing a rustle in the bushes above the rock wall, Dark Wing turned around, only to be knocked to the ground by T.K. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. was mad. 

In actuality, he was more than mad, he was enraged. After dashing Dark Wing to the ground, T.K. threw a swift punch to his jaw, causing a little blood to trickle down his mouth. Dark Wing shoved T.K. off roughly and wiped the blood from his mouth. He scowled at T.K., who was standing up. "What are you doing here?" he demanded. 

T.K. glared at him. "Why do you think I'm here?" 

Dark Wing looked over at Kari's unmoving form, then turned back to T.K. with a smirk. "If you came to save her," he said. "You're too late." Dark Wing took a step toward T.K. but was forced to move back when an arrow whizzed by, less than an inch away from his face. He looked up and saw the two DigiDestined's Digimon. It was Angewomon who had shot the arrow. 

Angemon and Angewomon landed on the ground, blocking Dark Wing from reaching either T.K. or Kari. The masked boy retreated and called for his minion. "Virumon! Go get them!" he cried, pointing to the Angel Digimon. Virumon growled and began attacking. 

Angewomon spoke to T.K. before responding to Virumon's attacks. "Take care of Kari," she said. T.K. nodded in reply. Both Angewomon and Angemon flew into the air and used their customary attacks on Virumon. 

T.K. ran over to where Kari was lying and kneeled down by her side. He gently nudged her and tried to get a response from her. "Kari," he said. "Please get up." When she didn't respond, T.K. moved her to a sitting position and continued to say, "I'm sorry, Kari, I was being stupid. I shouldn't have tried to pick an argument with you. Well, I didn't "try" to. I just don't want to argue with you. I care for you too much to do something stupid like that. I was wrong, I should've trusted your judgement. I'm really sorry, Kari. Please get up. Please be okay." 

"You were right, T.K." 

T.K. looked confused but overjoyed because Kari was all right. Kari slowly sat upright and held her head with one hand. She turned and looked straight into T.K.'s clear blue eyes. "I should be the one to say sorry, T.K.," she said. "After all, you were right about Dylan. When you said not to trust him." 

"Why do you say that?" asked T.K., surprise etched on his face. 

"Because he is Dark Wing." 

T.K.'s eyes widened at this. He glanced at Dark Wing shouting orders to Virumon to attack their Digimon. "But T.K.," she continued. "I know he's not evil. He's just confused. It's that mask he's wearing. The one that looks like Myotismon's. If we can get it off him I know he'll be okay again." Kari fixed her eyes on T.K., waiting for his answer. 

T.K. looked away for a moment. He then turned back to Kari with a small smile on his face. He nodded. "We'll help Dylan together." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Dark Wing smirked. Virumon was faring well against the two Angel Digimon. They were near exhaustion while it was using only part of its power. Virumon shot out repeated attacks against Angewomon that she could no longer block. He hit her one last time and she fell to the ground, her energy nearly spent. Darkness soon claimed her. 

"Angewomon!" shouted Angemon. He ducked just in time to miss Virumon's attack on him. "Hand of Fate!" he called. It struck Virumon hard, but Virumon took no notice to the attack. Instead, he lifted Angemon by his wings and flung him into the trees. "Déjà vu all over again," thought Angemon as he crashed into the branches. His wings became entangled with the branches and the leaves. He was trapped. "I'm sorry, T.K.," thought Angemon dimly. He, too, was claimed by darkness. 

"Angemon, no!" cried T.K. 

Dark Wing laughed. This was going to be much easier than he thought. Who knew the DigiDestined's Digimon could be so weak as opposed to Virumon? His eyes swept over to the two DigiDestined. T.K. was helping Kari stand up and he had his arm around her as support. 

"Hmm…" thought Dark Wing, tapping his chin thoughtfully. As it stood, Kari's power seemed to be much stronger when joined with T.K.'s. If T.K. was out of the way, her power would be lessened. Then again, Dark Wing had other reasons for wanting T.K. out of the way. One was because he absolutely hated him! The second was that he still wanted Kari. 

Yes, he admits it. He still loved Kari. From the first moment he laid his eyes on her three years ago, he wanted her. But T.K. never seemed to leave her side. That would have to be taken care of. Now. 

"Virumon!" summoned Dark Wing. Virumon turned around and watched his master, awaiting his orders. Dark Wing smiled and gestured toward T.K. "Finish off that DigiDestined with your strongest attack." Virumon turned to face T.K., preparing for his attack. 

T.K. saw this and instantly left Kari by the edge of the clearing. He then began running in a direction opposite from her. If Dark Wing wanted Virumon to attack him, there was no way he was going to let Kari get caught in the attack. Virumon continued to pursue T.K. until it was ready to use its strongest attack. 

"Virus Blast!" 

T.K. didn't have enough time to dodge the attack. He was going to be hit, that was a sure fact. The blast came down upon him and an explosion ensued. The area immediately took on a foggy appearance. Dark Wing really believed this was the end of the DigiDestined of Hope. But he was wrong. 

Seeing through the fog, Dark Wing could see T.K. lying several metres away from the place of the explosion, his arms protecting his head from any flying debris. Dark Wing became irate. How did T.K. avoid the blast? It was impossible! Dark Wing glanced over at the site of the blast and he couldn't believe what he saw. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. groggily lifted up his head. What had happened? One minute he was standing, with Virumon directly in front of him, ready to knock him off the face of the planet with his attack. The next minute, he was lying on the ground, several metres away. It was as if someone had moved him out of harm's way. As the fog cleared, T.K. looked towards the area the explosion had taken place. What he saw caused a fist to clench his heart and a tightness formed in his throat. 

Kari was lying motionless in front of Virumon.


	6. Part Six

**Dark and Light: Part Six**

By: Sakura

T.K. scrambled over to Kari's side, not caring about his safety or paying any attention to the Virumon, which had stopped attacking. 

Kari was so still and he was almost afraid to move her, but he finally gathered her into his arms and held her tight. T.K. then looked down at her. Kari's face was so pale. Touching it, he felt the coldness in her cheeks. Her breathing was barely audible. Just like what he saw in his dream…The only difference was that Virumon stood stock still behind him. 

"Kari?" whispered T.K. softly. "Kari, wake up, you have to!" Nothing he said could generate a response from her. Kari's face remained passive. T.K. couldn't think of what he could do to help her. Again, feelings of uselessness and self-doubt re-surfaced. 

"Don't leave me." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Dark Wing sank to his knees. 

No…what had he done? The Child of Light…could she be deleted? He wanted to punch himself, or at least kick himself for being such an idiot. It wasn't supposed to happen that way! Virumon's attack was supposed to hit T.K., not Kari. How could the end result be so different from what he had planned? 

Realization dawned on him. Kari must have seen that T.K. did not prepare to move out of harm's way and she herself went and knocked him to the side. He was saved…but she wasn't so lucky. Kari did that for T.K. and she didn't even think of her own safety first. She must really care for him. 

How could the DigiDestined be so stupid? How could they possess such weak emotions as loyalty and love? But then again, though not to his advantage, Dark Wing also possessed one of those so-called weak emotions. He loved Kari. 

Sure, he had treated her harshly earlier, but he had no intentions of completely annihilating her. The love he felt was growing in him and could no longer be confined in the deep reaches of his heart. 

Dark Wing quietly approached the DigiDestined from behind, though he didn't get too close to them. He didn't wish to disturb T.K. He couldn't understand why, but he hoped T.K. could save Kari's life. The problem was that he didn't know how T.K. would be able to accomplish something like that. As his way of helping out, Dark Wing did not give Virumon any orders to attack. 

"Could I be weakening?" thought Dark Wing. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. was just about ready to give up. 

But he couldn't, he knew he couldn't give up just yet. He had to keep trying. Looking over to both of his sides, T.K. could see Angewomon, looking as lifeless as Kari, and Angemon, tangled up in the branches of the trees. They had tried so hard to protect the two of them, but now it could mean the end for them. It was hopeless! T.K. groaned with frustration. Nothing could save them now! They were finished. He hung his head with his eyes shut tight. Weird as it seems, T.K. could hear Patamon's words from that very morning in his head, ringing as clear as a bell. 

"Have hope - and faith - in yourself. Just believe." 

T.K. slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Kari, lying still in his lap. How could he revive her? It was impossible, wasn't it? Another thought flew into his mind. "She can't die! Not now, not yet!" T.K. closed his eyes as tears formed in his eyes. "I've never had a chance to tell her that I love her." T.K. held Kari; tears began to fall from his eyes as he whispered, "I love you, Kari." The Crest of Hope appeared on T.K.'s chest and it shone brightly. 

As T.K.'s tears fell, they splattered lightly on Kari's face. A dreadful silence followed soon after. 

"T.K.?" 

T.K.'s eyes flew open. Instantly, his eyes locked with Kari's. Her face was wet with his tears…and her own. For a moment, T.K. didn't comprehend what had happened. It was too much of a shock. But when he realized what it meant, he held her tight in his arms, never wanting to let her go. Kari clung onto T.K., and she couldn't stop crying. T.K. lightly stroked her head. 

T.K. then pulled back and wiped away her tears. "I thought I would lose you," he whispered fiercely, his voice thick with emotion. "You don't know how much I care for you." 

Kari was now leaning against T.K. "But I do know," she said. "You told me." T.K. fell silent. "And T.K.?" Kari's grip tightened on his hand. "I love you, too." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Dark Wing gaped in amazement as Kari awakened. After a while, he really believed that T.K.'s attempts to awaken Kari were futile. But after seeing the powerful glow of the Crest of Hope, doubts were erased from his mind. A change came over him. As he watched the two DigiDestined holding each other, Dark Wing no longer felt that Kari still belonged to him. He didn't feel he had the right to separate them, since, after all, they had worked so hard to be together. 

As soon as Kari had uttered those three syllables, the Crest of Light appeared on Kari's chest. A bright flash shot out from the Crest. Dark Wing instantly covered his eyes. Virumon had been hit by it and he was instantly obliterated. The light soon touched Angemon and Angewomon; they were both revived to their full power. Angewomon flew up into the air and Angemon, freeing himself from the branches of the trees, flew to her side. The light continued to spread toward the ends of File Island, taking with it Raremon, Gesomon, and Mammothmon. Those Digimon would no longer pursue the other six DigiDestined. 

The light had not only come in contact with Digimon. After reviving the Angel Digimon and deleting Virumon, the stream of light hit Dark Wing's mask with full force and the mask disintegrated. Dylan crumpled to the ground. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After several moments had passed, the light died down. Angemon and Angewomon flew toward their partners and landed by their side. T.K. and Kari looked at their Digimon, their faces lighting up at the fact that they were all right. The pair stood up and both embraced their partner. 

Angewomon smiled as she said, "I'm glad you're all right, Kari." Turning to T.K., she added, "Thank you for protecting her." T.K. blushed and murmured something incoherent. 

Turning from Angewomon, Kari looked around. Virumon was destroyed, but where was Dark Wing? She then spotted Dylan, lying several metres away. She walked over to his crumpled form and knelt down next to him. 

T.K. and the Angel Digimon joined Kari's side. "Will he be okay?" asked T.K. 

Kari shook her head sadly. "I don't know," she replied. Her eyes looked downcast. 

Angemon looked towards Angewomon's direction and she nodded. "Angemon digivolve to…MagnaAngemon." T.K. and Kari both jumped back in surprise. "Magna Antidote." said MagnaAngemon. The light from his wings, aimed toward Dylan, hit him and slowly healed him. All of Dylan's dark wounds were sealed. All of his good memories re-surfaced and counteracted the evil. 

Dylan slowly sat up, a little confused. Kari smiled. "Welcome back, Dylan," she said. "I…" Looking back at her friends who smiled back at her. "We knew you could make it." She offered him a hand, to help him stand up. Dylan accepted it, though shame for his actions plagued him and told him that he did not deserve such kindness. Standing up, he saw T.K. stretch out a hand to him. 

T.K. smiled at him. "Hi, Dylan," he said. "My name's T.K. I don't think we've met yet." 

Dylan shook his hand. "No, we haven't, though Kari has told me quite a bit about you." 

T.K. laughed. "I hope it wasn't anything bad." 

"On the contrary. She made you sound like the most amiable guy." 

They all shared the feeling of laughter. Angewomon and MagnaAngemon, no longer needed at such a high level of energy, de-digivolved back to Gatomon and Patamon. The two Digimon looked at each other and smiled. 

Suddenly, the whole group disappeared. The clearing was empty as the sun broke through and a new day was born. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari looked out into the pink fog. Wait a minute, since when was fog pink? Where was she? She turned to find T.K. next to her. He smiled reassuringly. Looking further, Kari saw a house in the middle of all the fog, though, where the house was located, it was clear of the fog. Fish were swimming by. Fish? This was getting confusing. 

"Kari!" 

Kari spun around to see who had called her. To her surprise, she saw Tai and all the other DigiDestined. Tai ran to her and hugged his little sister tight. "You're all right," he said. "I was getting worried about you." 

"Good, you're all here," came a voice. 

"Gennai?" They all exclaimed. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

All of the DigiDestined and their Digimon were assembled around a table inside Gennai's home. They were all famished and were chowing down the food. Gennai just laughed at the sight of them and their healthy appetites. When all were done, they turned to face Gennai. He beamed at them. 

"It's good to see you all again," he started. He walked over to where T.K. and Kari were sitting. Placing his hands on their heads, he continued, "I have to thank you two especially for the great work you've done." Everyone looked at each other, mystified. 

"But, Gennai," said Tai, standing up. "Why are we here?" 

"I transported you here." 

"I meant to the Digital World, not your home." 

"So did I." 

Tai sat back down, perplexed. "Actually," continued Gennai, "I had only intended to call Kari and T.K. to the Digi-World, not all of you. I made a little error there." 

Now they were all bewildered, T.K. and Kari especially. 

"Why did you want to call only us, Gennai?" questioned T.K. 

A door slid open and in walked Dylan. He was surprised to see the whole group assembled there. He seemed a little indecisive about what to do, but then made up his mind. Dylan bowed to Gennai. "I'm sorry for interrupting, Master Gennai, I'll talk to you later." Dylan turned to leave, but Gennai stopped him. 

"T.K., Kari, this is why," he said, gesturing to Dylan. "You see, Dylan is my student, learning and training under my instruction. But somehow, Myotismon's mask and a dark spirit, after fusing together, had fallen into young Dylan's hands. With the mask on, Dylan would forget many good memories and only remember evil. I needed Kari's Light to free him from the power of the mask." 

"The problem was that Kari's Light could not be unleashed on it's own. This is where I needed T.K. Only Hope could unlock the power of the Light." 

Kari turned to face T.K., with a happy smile lighting up her features. She gave him a kiss, to the astonishment of their brothers. T.K. responded with his own. 

"I told you you're not useless," she whispered afterwards. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Kari," started Dylan. 

The two were standing outside while everyone else was saying their goodbyes to Gennai and their Digimon. 

"I'm sorry for lying to you." Kari looked at him quizzically. "About being a DigiDestined and all. And," his gaze shifted to the ground. "I'm really sorry for hurting you." 

Kari gave Dylan a hug. "You didn't really know what you were doing," she said. "With that mask controlling you and all. But everything worked out and you're back to normal." She smiled. "That's what counts." 

Dylan nodded. He then stepped forward and kissed Kari on the cheek, much to her surprise. "I'm going to miss you," he said. 

Kari nodded. "I'll miss you, too." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After saying goodbye one last time to their Digimon, the eight DigiDestined were transported back to their own world. The Digimon were soon transported back to above the waters surrounding Gennai's home. 

"Gennai," said Dylan, walking back with his mentor after the DigiDestined had left. "Will they, the DigiDestined, remember what has happened?" 

Gennai looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "They won't remember anything. To them, it would all just be a dream. The Digimon won't remember either." 

"It's a shame, then," thought Dylan. "That T.K. and Kari could become so close but never to remember what happened. It's just too bad." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

T.K. sat up on the sofa and rubbed his head. 

"What a weird dream," he thought. 

Matt also waking up, noticed the troubled expression on his brother's face. "What's wrong, T.K.?" he asked. 

T.K. scratched his head, trying to remember. "I had a dream…" 

"Oh, yeah?" said Matt. "What's it about?" 

"I can't remember anymore," answered T.K. 

"Oh." Matt turned off the television, got up, and headed toward the kitchen. 

Odd as it seemed to T.K., he could still feel Kari's lips brushing his, but that was impossible, seeing how he had never kissed her before. He blushed at that thought. "I wonder what it would be like to kiss Kari…" 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kari sat up on the floor of her balcony. 

"Gee, I'm starting to fall asleep anywhere." She stood up and looked out over the railing into the city. It was getting darker and lights were being lit. The city view was soon dotted with many lamps. It looked beautiful through her eyes. 

Kari slowly walked inside. She had a very strange dream, but for some reason she couldn't remember what happened in it. Except T.K. was there…Kari then noted she had a few bruises, but concluded that they appeared when she hit the balcony floor. How she could fall asleep there she didn't understand. 

Hearing the phone ring, Kari walked into the hallway and answered it. 

"Hey, Kari," said T.K., through the phone. Kari's stomach fluttered at hearing his voice. "Want to go out and get a pizza or something?" 

Kari's face broke out into a smile. "Sure!" 

"Great, I'll see you in a few minutes!" 

"Okay," she replied. "Bye." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Far away, in another world, a young boy looked up into the night sky. 

"I'll never forget you, Kari Kamiya. Thank you for everything." 

~*End*~

Author's Note: This is my first ever fan fic, only I wrote it under a different name before. I hope you liked it! ^_^

*Sakura

~The Animé Archives Team


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